Almost 700 jobs at risk as major car park firm collapses into administration

Another one bites the dust

This is just the latest of a number of businesses to fall into administration in recent months in the UK.

National Car Parks (NCP) is one of the largest car parking firms in the UK running 340 car parks nationwide with 682 jobs at risk as per the BBC.

PwC were called in to oversee the next steps, with the administrator saying that demand had not recovered to pre-Covid levels, highlighting "shifts in commuting and customer driving patterns".

It added that NCP could no longer afford to pay creditors after consistently losing cash and that the business could not scrap "long-term, inflexible" leases on unprofitable sites.

PwC said the best outcome would be to sell the business in order for NCP to pay money to those the firm owes it to.

It added: "All sites are open, staff remain in post, and trading continues as normal.

"We will be engaging with landlords, employees, and other stakeholders as we explore all options."

According to a filing from its parent company NCP had debts £305m greater than the values of its assets.

Joint administrator and PwC partner, Zelf Hussain, said the company had faced "a challenging trading environment" in recent times.

"Our priority on appointment is to ensure continuity of service while we undertake a detailed review of the business," he added.